Welcome to Bangalore — India’s tech hub. Glassy corporate buildings facing five-star hotels with tuxedo-clad waiters, rock bands jamming in front of ecstatic crowds — this is India’s new city of (en)joy.
But, today I want you to visit the other side of the city — laidback and groggy. It happens on weekdays, especially during afternoons. As if after a heavy lunch, unable to carry its paunch further, Bangalore goes off for a siesta. On Brigade Road, I venture out stealthily, looking heavenwards, thanking him for a lazy afternoon with few mortals walking on the pavements.
The romantic sojourn begins with a visit to the Tibetan market for a bite of beef momos and a tumbler of lime squash — the big burp comes naturally. The next stop is at a paan shop for a banarasi and cigarettes.
After some time of meditation, comfortably numb and watching the vehicles zoom past, crossed-legged on the staircase of a mall, I see the world parched on two halves. No, I am not a junkie, but to get the kick, you need the right dose of food in your stomach and best possible ambience. Talking to yourself, the world seems “not that bad afterall”. A couple of Bollywood songs certainly come to your rescue. This December afternoon, I’m singing my heart out for Bangalore. I thank it, for giving me a roof to hide my giant structure and a piece of loaf to fill my stomach and ample time to sing and laze around.
Few minutes of window shopping, admiring everything and rejecting all (here purchasing power rules and I have none), I am again game for loafing and seat myself comfortably at Kohinoor. This place is a cosy corner. The daily routine at Kohinoor includes two-three cups of tea and a plate of chicken fry and some evesdropping — what are they talking about so animatedly. I listen quietly as they talk and at times flash a smile. Oh, it’s beautiful!
Suddenly my "dream" comes to an end on Brigade Road as the crowd swells, breaking the lull. The lazy afternoon of December starts echoing with laughter and roadside bargaining.
As I smell the air, I hear it echoing, run back to the hills. For, peace is elusive.
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